Risperidone for Autism User Reviews

• BrittC
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 1, 2013

Risperdal (risperidone) "My son is almost 4. He is autistic, and his violent rage got completely out of control. His pediatrician prescribed Risperidone for him about a week ago, and so far, the results have been mind-blowing. He is on 1 mL once daily. He has had minimal side effects (tremors, fatigue); however, the aggression, outbursts, meltdowns, and violence have ceased completely. He is also non-verbal, and I do not know if this medicine is a contributing factor, but in the last week alone, my son has started repeating words and even sang his ABC's out of nowhere. This has been a godsend for us!"

• Joejoe
• August 23, 2014

Risperdal (risperidone) "My son was on risperidone at 4 years old for aggression associated with Autism. This medication has changed his life. No more aggression and very happy. He is now 8 and doing great. We did attempt to take him off to see if he still needed the medication at age 7 and all his past behaviors, hitting, kicking, swearing, crying came back immediately. With my son, we could not miss a dose and has to be given at the same time each day. He is now on 3x per day 0.5 given at school by nurse for afternoons. He has had no major side effects. He is very tall and very skinny. When he first got on the medication he became overweight, we changed his diet to more fruit and protein and the weight came off quickly. Highly recommend this medication."

• Anonymous
• June 29, 2011

Risperdal (risperidone) "My son became aggressive when he hit puberty (age 11), so the psychiatrist put him on this. For the first 2 months I was happy with the results. But his aggression started increasing, and he became extremely aggressive over the next year. His psychiatrist attributed it to rising male hormones and kept increasing the dosage, until my son was on 8 mg/day. I finally had to have my son hospitalized, as he was a danger to me and others. I was fed up, so I changed psychiatrists. She prescribed Abilify, but it took weeks to wean my son off the Risperdal. However, once he was off it, he became the lovely boy he used to be. Every child is different, so keep that in mind!"

• orca
• October 26, 2019

Risperdal (risperidone) "I was given this horrific drug risperdal at 14 years old because my anger was out of control. I had an eating disorder and gained over 20 pounds in 2 or 3 weeks despite starving myself. The weight kept piling on. I was very uncomfortable and couldn't get used to it. I makes me angry that mentally ill people are expected to just live with the uncontrollable weight gain for the sake of mental health. I felt like I was constantly in a fog. I could barely understand or react to anything anyone was saying, I had uncontrollable jerky tics. My night terrors got way worse. I fought my parents tooth and nail to get off this drug. They tried to hide it in my food and drinks but I seen pieces and grinds of it every time. After a few weeks I stopped taking it. I found out later the tics and movement problems can be permanent if you stay on these types of drugs for long. I'm not sure how long though. Doctors kept trying to push anti-psychotics on me and I flat-out refused."

• Dad
• September 26, 2013

Risperdal (risperidone) "My 4-year-old takes 0.5 mg dissolvable tablets twice a day. It has helped a little with sleep, but more with aggression. The pharmacy changed it to an off-name brand; his aggression got three times worse. His doctor switched it to the name brand, and he was back to normal. I was told that this is common with some off brands. We can't believe there's that big a difference."

• LRS
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 29, 2015

Risperdal (risperidone) "I have recently started my 25 yo son with autism Risperdal. He has taken it when he was 13, but due to the combination of anti depressants and no improvement in his violent behaviour we stopped, but he did improve verbally. After he refused to take anti depressants after 9 months of treatment with improvement made, he deteriorated over the next 7 months, We insisted he try Risperdal, immediate improvement, 3 weeks in and he is more verbal and calmer with no more aggression. He is sweet and happier again."

• batch
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 17, 2017

Risperdal (risperidone) "Honestly this medication was awful and the doctor who prescribed it failed to mention that it made it impossible to think. I think it's abusive to give this medication out for people who are not schizophrenic. It's just another way for people to take away autonomy and to force us autistic people into harmful therapies that deny us our humanity."

• Schmi...
• April 24, 2008

Risperdal (risperidone) "This drug changed my life. It turned down my emotions just enough (I'm on 0.5mg) that I could actually function in normal society. Thanks to it, I am now in college (when I was diagnosed at 16, I was failing half my courses) and doing phenomenally well. I can't say this will work for everyone, but I must say it's exactly what I needed. Thank you Janssen Pharmaceutical, you have given me a future."

• Bobby...
• January 18, 2018

Risperdal (risperidone) "I have grown breasts from this pill. I swear if they don't take me off this I'm gonna cry. I take a 10mg tablet and my chest size has grown and Im skinny. I'm only 18. Why can’t autism be more important researching for a cure then cancer."

• miche...
• December 18, 2013

"My autistic 15 year old son was extremely violent. I had to take him into the hospital 3 times in a 24 hour period..he was prescribed a few different medicines but none worked, except this one. He is himself, without aggression, irritability. I immediately notice he could wait and concentrate. It is a God send."

• Chrisy
• August 5, 2017

"My son has Autism Severe learning disabilities. I really didn't want him on any medication, cause of side effects. But my son was having such bad meltdown's of past abuse with his respite and school, He would punch hard his both ears and face, head, throw smash things, I have tried to stop him and he's attacked me punched me and scammed me. It's very upsetting seeing your son having meltdowns My son was put on respiritone 0.5mg one in morning and one evening I can honestly say he's never been so calm, concentration is amazing, it's taken his anxiety away He's much better in crowds when walking, when he's out and about he's fine with noises he couldn't cope before like noisy bikes children screaming. Calm, talks more sentences FAB!!!"

• G-mans...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 8, 2016

Risperdal (risperidone) "My son is high functioning autistic. His behavior specialist recommend risperdol .05mg daily for my son for aggression and violent out bursts. After being on it for a week we noticed that he is much calmer. We have noticed some side effects such as. Hyper attentiveness, nightmares, muscle spasms and itchiness."

• Anonymous
• March 5, 2010

Risperdal (risperidone) "Helped with the behaviors, but the side effects were swollen throat, heavy feeling in limbs, facial tics, hearing voices. Be careful and monitor your child closely if your child is on this medication."

• Grandma...
• June 9, 2017

"My grandson started on risperidone when he was four years old. He was having difficulties at daycare very violent and aggressive and hurting himself and others. The drug was a lifesaver he was able to function and get along with others and become more productive. We did try to take him off a few months ago and everything came back. We tried Abilify and that did not work at all so we put them back on the Risperidone 2 weeks later is a much happier child I definitely recommend it!"

• LLano
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• January 6, 2020

Risperdal (risperidone) "My daughter, 9, HF Autism level 1.5, severe ADHD & sensory disorder. She was medicated with Ritalin which did not help her concentration, but did help her sit longer in a chair. Her negative behavior did not change. She was given 0.3 mg Risperdol drops and we were able to redirect her violent episodes easier. But still was not helpful enough. With .25 Risperdol drops in the morning and again .25 at 4 or 5 in the evening changed her violence to tears (big improvement). She is now able to cry from her frustration. We are then able to redirect her thinking to a happier place. Thankful, she has had absolutely no side effects. Since taking Risperdol, she is functioning better in school and is able to listen to directions better. She is also more verbal on this dose. She has begun to ask for it when she enters the negative moods which happens morning and evening before her scheduled dose."

• Smurp...
• September 20, 2011

Risperdal (risperidone) "My daughter has been on this for several years (started at 0.25mg, worked up to 0.5mg 2x a day) to help with mood/emotion, and to help her move past things when she gets emotionally "stuck" and there were times when I thought it wasn't really doing much. Then I couldn't get it refilled for a couple days, so she didn't have any before school. They noticed something was different. They called me to ask if there had been a medicine change. Sometimes, you think it isn't working, but at home, things are different than at school. No weight issues: 5', 98lbs."

• Steph
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 8, 2020

Risperdal (risperidone) "I have such a love hate relationship with risperdal. It helped us during a time when my son was in crisis (has OCD) but the thing is, it loses its effectiveness and we are constantly having to increase or keep him where he is even though it’s not working because weaning off the med is so awful. Honestly, I don’t think the side effects and nightmare of trying to get off this med is worth it, in my opinion."

• Thrif...
• March 14, 2020

"Cannot recommend risperidone for autism. If you insist on using, do so with extreme caution!—and careful increasing dose. My son, age 9, was put on low-dose (.25) for meltdowns associated with autism spectrum disorder. He did fine, with complete eradication of meltdowns, for six weeks. Then doctor ordered us to give him a second dose daily. That is when the horrible side effects began: weird flicking gestures with his fingers and hands. He said he was compelled to do it to get rid of an “itch,” but couldn’t express himself very well. At first we thought it was an obsessive-compulsive disorder, perhaps caused by the RESPIRDAL. But then I discovered tardive akathesia — which is a restless syndrome caused by this class of drug and which manifests as weird body movements. No sure diagnosis yet; still weaning him slowly off the drug. But the experience is terrifying—my son is TORMENTED by this urge to flick his hands, and I pray to God it stops, once we end the med. I read that is usually temporary."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 23, 2017

Risperdal (risperidone) "My son is autistic he is 10 years old, my son's Dr recommend risperdal for him because of his aggressive behaviors. After 3 months on the medication he has been more agitated and he put on 15 pounds. So the Dr wants to increase the medicine. I will not be doing this increased"

• Anonymous
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• May 18, 2014

"I put my 22 yr old autistic son on risperidone 6 months ago and what a transformation.! After yrs of pleading with doctors to put my son on this medication I'm finally relieved hes now on it as he is a completely different person. He used to be extremely violent, throwing, hitting out, biting his arm severely, he was a massive liability, but 6 mths on what a difference, he doesn't do any of these things anymore thanks to risperidone. However, on the downside this medication has caused him to gain weight and makes him tired, he also doesn't show much emotion with activities where things can be an effort for him, seems quite disinterested in things, I would much rather him be how he is now than how he was before he started taking risperidone."

• Overw...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• March 12, 2016

"My 9 year old son, who has autism, was put on risperidone about a year and a half ago after being hospitalized for aggressive and self-harming behavior. It has been very effective with the violent behavior. He is still quite argumentative and has tantrums and meltdowns occasionally but it's much better. The main side effect was weight gain due to his increased appetite. He was always famished! He gained 8-10 pounds in 2 months which is alot for a 7 year old. The Vyvance that he takes for adhd is supposed to suppress his appetite but it wasn't enough to outweigh what the risperidone was doing. After a few months his dr put him on metformin. It did the trick. He lost his added weight. The Vyvance/metformin combo balanced out the risperidone."

• Doods...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 9, 2016

"Our 13 year old son was diagnosed with ADHD and OCD at age 6. He is now 13 and in full blown puberty. Prozac and Focalin were no longer working for him. We went to a top pediatric psychiatrist and he changed our sons diagnosis to Aspergers or now High Functioning autism. He prescribed Risperdal and told us this medication would act like "glue" and keep all the connections in his brain together. 3 days later we were in the emergency room because our son was suffering with severe dystonia. It was the scariest thing I ever witnessed. We are now working with a pediatric neurologist to find a medication that will work for him."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• May 9, 2013

"My youngest son has taken it for meltdowns for some time now. He sleeps better too. It has caused him to gain some weight. My oldest son was on ADHD medication for years, when he reached puberty it caused many problems. So the Doctor prescribed risperidone for him too, and it has helped him gain so much self control. They are both in high school and doing well."

• Lookst
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 1, 2019

Risperdal (risperidone) "At 0.5mg it made my mood swings and overall irritability a lot less chaotic and more manageable. It made me able to think about what I'm feeling and why. It's not perfect but it's a huge aid. For me it had certain drawbacks, like slight weight gain and oversleeping which made me look for other options."

• Anonymous
• July 19, 2009

Risperdal (risperidone) "My son has high functioning autism and the doctor prescribed this medication for outburst and agitation. It did the exact opposite. He became more aggressive and physically abusive to the point he could no longer go to school and learn anything else. It took time to gradually take him off the medication and once we did he was so much better. An ADHD medication worked much better."